Somehow hearing his name said so formally from the lips he's so often made scream out A-Cheng snaps him out of his daze. He glances about and sees a couple of eyes on them. He straightens his shoulders and as he nods his expression and tone shift toward a more respectable neutral.
"It was. The boats on the river were especially nice this time of year. Would you care to sit while we talk?" He offers, gesturing politely to where their clan tables were so close together. They might be a little less on display there, though not by much. "I'd like to hear how your travel was."
~~~
As the major clans have all arrived, Jin Ling turns and walks further into the room. He can feel eyes on him, watching his every move. He concentrates on not leaning on his scepter or limping or letting any strain show on his face. He'd gotten much stronger since Zizhen left when he was struggling to barely walk around his courtyard at night, but he hadn't made a full recovery yet. It bothered him that there was still so far for him to go to wield his sword again properly. His ability to shoot was even worse, though again, there had been improvement.
Either way, it's a relief when he can finally head to his seat on the throne. He tells himself not to, but he can't help his gaze slipping to the side. It feels like an arrow to the heart when his eyes connect with Yuan's. His heart aches for the other boy. He yearns to hold him and find out how his life has turned out. He wishes he knew why Yuan had never written to him. His lips part as though he might say something, but he instead looks away. It takes every ounce of strength to do so, but he must. Forgive me, A-Yuan.
His focus returns to where he's walking right as he comes to the stairs leading up to his table. His movement is just a touch slower than it should be as he ascends and upon reaching the throne, he makes a quick gesture to stoke the censor fire. It won't be too long before he can push that away, but there is still enough of a chill in the air to make him sore.
He glances again in Yuan's direction, but instead he notices his dumb friends are missing. He gestures for Liling. "Go find Zizhen and Jingyi!" He hisses quietly. As she leaves, he picks up his goblet- leaning on his staff a bit more- and holds it up for his guests. In a much louder voice, he says, "Greetings guests and welcome to Lanling. Please enjoy my hospitality during your stay. It's an honor to have you all here and I wish you all well in the tournament games. In particular, I'd like to thank the Jiang clan, the Nie clan, and the Ouyang clan for their assistance in preparing for the events this week. It was a pleasure to work with you all." He bows and lifting the glass a little higher in a toast, he drinks.
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
chiming
no subject
Date: 2022-06-19 08:43 pm (UTC)From:"It was. The boats on the river were especially nice this time of year. Would you care to sit while we talk?" He offers, gesturing politely to where their clan tables were so close together. They might be a little less on display there, though not by much. "I'd like to hear how your travel was."
~~~
As the major clans have all arrived, Jin Ling turns and walks further into the room. He can feel eyes on him, watching his every move. He concentrates on not leaning on his scepter or limping or letting any strain show on his face. He'd gotten much stronger since Zizhen left when he was struggling to barely walk around his courtyard at night, but he hadn't made a full recovery yet. It bothered him that there was still so far for him to go to wield his sword again properly. His ability to shoot was even worse, though again, there had been improvement.
Either way, it's a relief when he can finally head to his seat on the throne. He tells himself not to, but he can't help his gaze slipping to the side. It feels like an arrow to the heart when his eyes connect with Yuan's. His heart aches for the other boy. He yearns to hold him and find out how his life has turned out. He wishes he knew why Yuan had never written to him. His lips part as though he might say something, but he instead looks away. It takes every ounce of strength to do so, but he must. Forgive me, A-Yuan.
His focus returns to where he's walking right as he comes to the stairs leading up to his table. His movement is just a touch slower than it should be as he ascends and upon reaching the throne, he makes a quick gesture to stoke the censor fire. It won't be too long before he can push that away, but there is still enough of a chill in the air to make him sore.
He glances again in Yuan's direction, but instead he notices his dumb friends are missing. He gestures for Liling. "Go find Zizhen and Jingyi!" He hisses quietly. As she leaves, he picks up his goblet- leaning on his staff a bit more- and holds it up for his guests. In a much louder voice, he says, "Greetings guests and welcome to Lanling. Please enjoy my hospitality during your stay. It's an honor to have you all here and I wish you all well in the tournament games. In particular, I'd like to thank the Jiang clan, the Nie clan, and the Ouyang clan for their assistance in preparing for the events this week. It was a pleasure to work with you all." He bows and lifting the glass a little higher in a toast, he drinks.